Youth in America Today 1/4/98

Proverbs 22: 6
Page 961 Come Alive Bible

Jesus Christ gave new dignity to the home when He, the Son of God, chose it as the environment into which He came when He visited earth.

Marriage was the first institution established by God. Little wonder that it is a primary object of attack today. Thus, with marriage as the basis the home was the institution initially established by God.

One of the most strategic roles played by any human being is that of a parent. It is a challenge to be cherished. Let’s explore some realms of family life you may never have considered. Let’s take a look at youth in America today.

Let me urge you not to stop listening until this message ends. There are points at which it might be very discouraging. The conclusion offers encouragement hope.

To listening youth, as you hear certain parts of this message don’t give up on yourself, your peers, or think all adults have. We haven’t. Some of today’s youth stir optimism in the hearts of many of us.

As you hear of trends among youth today thank God He has created you as a unique individual. You are not shackled by heredity and environment. Both influence us dramatically, but our all wise and loving God has given us a free will to choose. That supersedes and overcomes both heredity and environment.

A Princeton research group recently posed the following question to a broad based random sampling of persons.

“What do you think is the biggest threat facing American society?” The collective response reveal, “Youth of today pose a greater threat than any foreign power.”

The second question: “Do you think youth of today will make the world of tomorrow a better place?” Two-thirds of the Americans interviewed said, “NO.”

Third question: “What three adjectives describe the youth of today?”

They were: IRRESPONSIBILITY, IMPOLITE, SELF-CENTERED.

To youth listening, don’t quit listening now. Many of you who don’t fit that profile would, however, agree it does fit many youth. Unfortunately it may be a description of most.

Incidents such as those in Pearl, Mississippi, Paducah, Kentucky, and Santa Claus, Georgia raise serious questions. Appropriately question number one is “WHY?” What is causing trends among today’s youth that has resulted in some social scientists predicting that the dawning of the new millennium will be greeted by youth gangs controlling the streets of America?

Current conditions are appalling among students. In the last six months 24% of 13 year olds, and 60% of 17 year olds have attended a party where marijuana was available.

34% of 13 year olds and 75% of 17 year olds have friends who are a regular drinkers.

19% of 13 year olds and 51% of 17 year olds have seen drug sales on school grounds.

8% of 13 year olds and 27% of 17 year olds have class mates who died because of drugs or alcohol overdose. WHY? Let me share four contributing factors.

1. A criminology professor at Northwestern University says video games makes killing of human beings look like fun. Violent movies and TV stimulate the same impulses. The alleged shooter in Paducah, Kentucky named the film that inspired his actions.

2. Teaching relativism, that is, there are no moral absolutes, is causing the inability among many youth to express moral reservations about anything. Teaching multiculturalism and “values clarification,” as amazing as it may seem to many, has made it difficult for youth to express objections to human sacrifice, ethnic cleansing, and slavery. Educators who have been in the field for a number of years have seen a dramatic shift in attitudes toward these topics.

One philosophy professor found that up to 20% of his students were unable to say that what the Nazis did in World War II was wrong. Students couched their disapproval of mass killings in terms of personal preferences.

Not only is the holocaust viewed through eyes of tolerance and without being interpreted by moral absolutes so is the horror of slavery. It is a matter of preference. Whose preference? Have you ever heard of slaves preferring it?

The concept of relativism, that is, there are no moral absolutes, has a flip side also.

Whereas, slavery, mass killing, ethnic cleansing, and abortion are looked at objectively environmentalism and animal rights evoke a definite moral stand.

Amazing as it may seem, a growing number of professors are finding an increasing number of students who will not condemn slavery or the Holocaust readily assert that treating humans as superior to dogs and rodents is immoral.

A commitment to tolerance, relativism, there being no moral absolutes, is inhibiting many students from saying that some behavior is just plain wrong. If it isn’t considered wrong it is therefore permissible to do it. This is resulting in an increase in aberrant behavior such as killings in public schools.

3. A second factor is music. Don’t stop listening until the point is fully developed.

A study has been conducted involving three groups of mice.

Each group was tested as to how long it took them to work their way through a maze. Each group took approximately 10 minutes. Then the following was arranged.

-One group listened to no music.
-One group listened to the classical work of Mozart 10 hours a day.
-One group listened to hard rock 10 hours a day.

At the end of one month they were tested again.

-The group that listened to no music could now work their way through the maze in approximately 5 minutes, half the original time.
-The group that listened to Mozart solved the maze in 1 1/2 minutes.
-The group that listened to hard rock required 30 minutes.

4. The third case rests with parents.

A normal child is born with a brain weighing approximately 3 pounds. It consists of about 100 billion brain cells called neurons. No new ones are grown. Each brain cell is connected to thousands of other brain cells by electrochemical structures called synapse. Unused brain cells and connectors wither away and can not be revived.

Synapses form the wiring of the brain like a electrician wires a house. They allow various areas of the brain to communicate. Synaptic activity is the interaction of these cells causing the brain to function. The number and organization of connections in the brain influences everything from the ability to recognize letters to manage complex social relationships.

Within the brain there are various areas assigned specific functions. One area, the occipital lobe, is assigned the job of identifying what we see, another, the temporal lobe, processes spoken language, the temporal lobe also processes hearing, one area assesses whether we are in danger, and another of the several regions of the brain is where our capacity for social interaction is determined.

The neurons composing the brain are all formed before birth. Though there are no new neurons after birth it is then the wiring and re-wiring begins. That is, the synapses begin to connect.

At birth a baby has about 50 trillion synapses.

At eight months of age the number has grown to over 1,000 trillion synapses.

Are you ready for this? By age twenty the number has decreased from 1,000 trillion to only 500 trillion.

The decline coincides with the time when hormones kick in.

An infant’s brain is not simply a miniature adult brain. Certain regions of it are not developed at birth. Synaptic connections have to be developed.

For example, if a child cannot hear at birth that part of the brain doesn’t develop. The synaptic connections simply are not made. Even if by artificial means the child is later enabled to hear comprehension is difficult because that part of the brain is not developed. If a child is born deaf and doesn’t hear human speech by age 10 they will never understand language. That part of the brain isn’t properly developed and never will be.

The same principle is true of sight. Doctors now remove congenital cataracts from infants as early as possible. They now know that unless they do the neural connections between the eye and brain will fail to develop properly. If not corrected early on sight will never be right. If this isn’t accomplished by age 2 the child will never be able to see.

Early childhood experiences have a dramatic influence on the brain-wiring process. They can cause the final number of brain synapses in the brain to increase or decrease by as much as 25%. Which area may fail to develop is determined by a persons experiences in infancy.

Young parents, please hear this. As there are specific parts of the brain developed by sound and sight so there are certain parts of the brain are only developed by touch. The parietal lobe processes touch. Even a minimum of 15 minutes a day of being held and stroked three times helps develop those portions of the brain related to emotional, cognitive, and physical development. Remember like sight and hearing if they aren’t developed in infancy it is difficult for them to ever be developed.

CAT scans of the brains of children reared in the emotionally deprived environment of Eastern European child houses, such as in Romania, are revealing. Cat scans of those reared without loving human touch show the portion of the brains associated with social interaction is not developed.

This may be hard, but it is a hard fact American parents need to face. By not properly loving, reading to, talking to, holding and stroking children the part of their brains associated with social interaction isn’t developed. This makes them candidates for anti-social conduct as being seen across America. They can kill without emotion. They can destroy and have no remorse.

Listen carefully to the news reports you hear that describe the offender as showing no remorse.

These behaviors are not senseless. They arise from children adapting to and reflecting the world in which they have been raised.

The cost to society resulting in large part from parents not loving, holding, and caressing their children is staggering.

Between 1993 and 1996 the number of admissions to Youth Detention Centers increased from 15,762 to 23,284. The number held for 90 rose from 78 to 4,476.

Parents are participants in the deeds of their children. It is either for good or bad depending upon how they relate to them in infancy. Hear this: Same care-giver nurturing is essential to proper development. That includes social development. Like sight and hearing if this isn’t developed in infancy it can never be fully developed.

A child must have the opportunity to form a comfortable and secure relationship with a care-giver in order to promote their healthy emotional development. Parents, that means you need to devote time and expressive love to your children starting at birth. Parenthood requires being responsible for giving consistent love and emotional support to infants.

Our grandmothers were right when they said hold your child and talk to it. Now science is catching up with grandmother.

Therefore, TRAIN UP A CHILD IN THE WAY HE SHOULD GO…

Young people remember these are contributing factors found in your heredity and environment. However, you don’t have to be controlled by your environment any more than a person has to be absorbed by the stream in which they swim. God has given you a free will and His Spirit to overcome these challenges.

Youth not given emotional support that developed the portion of their brain controlling social interaction have a challenge. It is a challenge which can be met, though with difficulty. You can willfully assert good moral judgement with proper help. Just as hearing aids and optic surgery help children born without sight or the ability to hear so the Lord Jesus Christ can help you gain moral victories.

Satan has four goals:
To deceive, discredit, discourage and defeat.

How to Be a Winner in Life’s Big Race

“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before….”  Hebrews 12: 1

This text is often used to describe living saints as being on a playing field with the stands filled with Old Testament people of faith and those who have since died with faith watching to see how we perform.

That misses the point. The Greek for witnesses is “martyres,” which at the time meant a witness. A witness is a person who testifies of what they have heard or seen. Therefore, the cloud of witnesses are people of faith who have preceded us testifying of the sufficiencies of the Lord. They are there to encourage us. Their declaration in summary is HE IS ABLE.

“Every weight” spoken of as applied to an athlete was to take off anything that would hinder the race. There are certain attitudes and actions we must put aside if we are to spiritually compete in the race of faith.

The sin which so easily ensnares us or besets us, is the one that is most appealing and enticing to an individual. Satan is no less a strategist than a brilliant military general who scouts his opponent to find the weakest point to attack. Satan knows yours, do you? Pause and contemplate that question.

The ancient Greek commentators, from whom we might expect some light on the phrase, seem to be entirely reduced to conjecture. Chrysostom, for example, adopts in various places two altogether different meanings, “sin which easily (or, completely) surrounds us,” “sin which is easily overcome.” To these Theophylact adds a third, “sin through which man is easily brought into danger.”

That is the one, or those are the ones, needing for our defenses to be built stronger.

Lay aside that sin. The illustration might be to a runner who refused to put off a garment which the crowd admired, though such an encumbrance must cause him to fail of the prize. This depicts a person’s sin the crowd approves of, actually admires. It gaining the wearer popularity makes it difficult to abandon. It is a you approve of my sin, I will applaud yours. Approval by others is a strong enticement not to abandon the popular sin.

Our example for running the race set before us is found in the next verse: “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12: 2)

Keep your eyes on no example other than Jesus and run on — faithfully.

Lead Us Not Into Temptation but Deliver Us From Evil – Part Two

Matthew 6: 3

The Greek word for temptation, “peirasmos,” can properly be translated to tempt to do evil, and also do not allow us trials or heavy burdens. Since it is possible to be used in both senses it is proper to consider it from both angles. 

This single line from the Model Prayer Jesus used as a teaching tool reveals much about God. There is reason to rejoice over the fact God leads us. Here is good news: “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.” (I Corinthians 10: 13) He who limits your load knows your load limit.

We know from James 1:13 that God does not tempt us to sin. If God did tempt us to sin, He would be acting contrary to His holy nature, against His desire for us to be holy as He is holy. (1 Peter 1:16) 

The inclusion of a request for God not to lead us into temptation teaches us that avoiding temptation should be one of the primary concerns of the Christian life.

This portion of the Model Prayer is in keeping with the fact we have an ability to avoid temptation. That means we have a tendency to some degree to yield to temptation. He will not allow us to be tempted above our ability to resist the temptation. He has the ability to shield and protect us.

He allows trials for the same reason a bodybuilder lifts weights to build his body. In doing so he is testing his body to develop. In the same manner trials are allowed that by resisting them we may grow stronger in the faith. Properly responded to they develop us spiritually.

“I count it all joy when I fall into various temptations; knowing this — that the trying of my faith works patience.” (James 1: 2, 3)

If the temptation in the Lord’s Prayer refers to trials, then the meaning of Matthew 6:13 is, “Do not afflict or try us.” It is not wrong to pray that we may be delivered from trials and suffering, as long as we yield ourselves to His will.

David prayed a similar request: “Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil so that I take part in wicked deeds along with those who are evildoers; do not let me eat their delicacies.” (Psalm 141: 4) In all things, God is our deliverer, and we are wise to seek His power over sin.

The prayer that God would deliver us from evil has a counterpart in the command with a promise: “Resist the devil and He will flee from you.” That can’t be possible if we try to do it in the energy of the flesh. The first part of that verse tells how it is made possible, “submit to God.” (James 4: 7)

Lead Us Not Into Temptation but Deliver Us From Evil – Part One

Matthew 6: 3

The Greek word for temptation is “peirasmos.” It has two possible meanings. One means to entice one to sin. The other means to test or try.

James 1: 13, 14 says God cannot tempt us to sin.

Therefore, in interpreting the phrase in the Lord’s prayer “lead us not into temptation,” does not mean to tempt to sin.

Paul Thigpen offers insight into the Model Prayer.

Jesus did not say “Don’t tempt us,” but “don’t lead us into temptation.”

Even Jesus was tempted. “Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.” (Matthew 4: 1) In this passage peirasmos was used in the sense of testing or trial, not to induce Him to sin, but to reveal His capacity.

Scripture shows God uses trial to reveal what is in a person’s heart. 

Abraham was tested to sacrifice Isaac. His response indicated it was not in his heart to disobey God by not sacrificing Isaac. God did not want human sacrifice, but He wanted Abraham to show his will to do it, and then upon showing his willingness to obey, God stopped him.

David was tested by his desire regarding Bethsheba and failed the test. He later contritely repented and committed himself to the Lord which showed what was really in his heart. He learned the lesson regarding his own weakness.

Tests are files that rub off the rust of self-confidence.

God allows trials so we can provide a witness to others and examples of God’s sufficiency in face of His enemies.

Paul told Timothy, “Train yourself to be godly.” (I Timothy 4: 7)       

God does not tempt us Himself, but He allows us to be tested. Martin Luther said, “My temptations have been my masters in divinity.”

We pray not to be led to temptation because of our concern about our capacity to handle it and we don’t want to fail God. It means I don’t even want to be in a position to fail God. 

Later in the passage it is said, “Deliver us from evil.” This can be translated as “rescue” us from evil. This is a confession of our weakness, and is an appeal to be rescued from what evil things can be done against us.

It would be false pride and over self-confident to pray, “Go ahead, put me to the test.” Rather pray as Jesus instructed us to in His model prayer.

SUPPORTING TEXTS        
“There has no temptation taken me but such as is common to man: But God is faithful, Who will not suffer me to be tempted above that which I am able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that I may be able to bear it.” I Corinthians 10:13

“I count it all joy when I fall into various temptations; knowing this — that the trying of my faith works patience.” (James 1: 2, 3)

Finding the Will of God 1/25/98

Acts 11: 1 – 14
Page 1611 Come Alive Bible

[Text to Be Read: Ephesians 5:17]
Page 1712 Come Alive Bible

JESUS CHRIST said, “Whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother” (Matthew 12: 50).

The happiest, most content, most fulfilled person in all the world is the person doing God’s will. That being true, one of the most important things in all the world is knowing God’s will.

The greatest deception perpetuated by Satan is that happiness and gratification can be found apart from God’s will. Momentary kicks, yes. But not lasting happiness. For kicks apart from Christ always – ALWAYS – have a kick-back.

If knowing God’s will is so important and results in such blessings, how can you know God’s will? Momentarily I will share six Biblical principles involved in finding God’s will. First I want to warn there are some persons who are blind guides offering to guide the blind. Beware of these.

SOME TYPES ARE:
1. Those who have made up their minds what they are going to do but are looking for somebody to agree with them; and thus, console themselves that they are right because of this agreement. They often look for a minister who agrees with them. If one doesn’t, they turn to another. If a friend doesn’t, they continue to look for a confirming friend.

2. Another type is the person who has fouled up his or her own life and is now ready to counsel everyone else on how to do it. These persons can be recognized by these traits.
a. They have goofed-up their own lives.
b. They have a minimum understanding of grace.
c. They are nosey about other people’s business.
d. They believe they are experts because of their experience.

These persons are guilty of sticking their nose in other people’s business.

CONSIDER THESE PERIMETERS OF GOD’S WILL
-It begins at the moment of salvation and ends at death.

-All of God’s will is in keeping with the principles, commands, techniques, promises, doctrines, and declarations of the Bible. God will never contradict His written Word — NEVER.

GOD’S BASIC WILL FOR THE LOST AND THE SAVED IS EVIDENT
-For the lost it is simple — God is “not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (II Pet 3:9). “And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ…” (I John 3: 23).

-For the saved it is simple — Ephesians 5: 17, 18.

To find God’s will, apply a basic principle of math. To find the unknown, start with the known.

Remember such problems as: 2X = 10. What does X equal? The answer is 5. To find the unknown, always start with the known. For the lost, it is to receive Christ as Savior. For the saved, it is to live a Spirit- filled life. Before you look for the more complex aspects of God’s will, it is essential that these two “knowns” be complied with.

In Acts 11:1, seven principles are found to have been used by Peter in proving that what he had done was God’s will. These same seven need to be applied in our search for His will.

What Peter had done violated four basic, ritualistic taboos. Therefore, the religious leaders “contended” with Him. The word means they kept on persecuting him. This was no academic debate; it was a verbal war. Peter had:
-Eaten with a Gentile. That simply wasn’t done.
-Ate Gentile food.
-This Gentile was a Roman.
-He stayed in the house until after dark.

In light of their contention, Peter “explained” his actions. The word means he kept on explaining it in historical order. He shared seven principles used to convince him this was God’s will.

I. PRAYER WAS THE FIRST PRINCIPLE OF DIVINE GUIDANCE
“I was in the city of Joppa praying…” (vs. 5).

Prayer is essential in the search for God’s will. It is making a humble request of the Lord. Prayer is not a system of rationalization. Prayer, though essential, is not enough alone. Other factors must converge.

II. THINKING WAS THE SECOND PRINCIPLE
Peter said “I observed it intently and considered… (vs. 6).

The word literally meant “to put your mind to something, to ponder.” This meant to think through intently and in detail for a long while. It is a reference to objective thinking. That is, thinking apart from emotions.

III. THE WORD OF GOD IS THE THIRD PRINCIPLE
Peter did not have the Word like we have today. Therefore, before the Word was written it was rarely miraculously spoken. Peter heard the Word three times before it sank in.

Prayer, the first principle in seeking God’s will must be combined with a knowledge of the Word. A certain “sweet thing” might feel she is in love with “Mr. Wonderful” and decides to pray about it. She is a Christian and he a non-believer. She prays, “God, if you don’t close the door, I will know it is your will for me to marry him.” No door is closed so she assumes it to be God’s will for them to marry. It isn’t. She didn’t even need to pray about this decision. God’s will is already spelled out in His Word on this subject. In effect, God closed the door long before she prayed. II Cor. 6:14 is the closed door. It says simply that we should not be unequally yoked. That’s the closed door. THINK!

IV. PROVIDENTIAL CIRCUMSTANCES IS THE FOURTH
While Peter was praying and considering the vision three men suddenly appeared with a special request (vs. 11).

If circumstances suggest something contrary to God’s Word, they are not of God.

V. HOLY SPIRIT GUIDANCE IS THE FIFTH
Verse 12 shares a strategic principle. It is this. The Bible was not yet fully authored; and thus, Peter didn’t have the New Testament as his source of instruction. Today it must be ours. He had God’s Word vocally. We have it written. The vision was equivalent for him as the Word is for us today. The fact “the Spirit told” him to go is equivalent to the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit through the written Word today.

The Holy Spirit will NEVER lead anyone to do anything contrary to the written Word of God.

VI. COMPARISONS IS THE SIXTH
In verses 13 – 15 Peter and the men compare notes. This takes us back to the principle of thinking. As they compared notes, their insights dovetailed. This convergence was of God.

VII. SCRIPTURE MEMORY IS THE SEVENTH
Peter recalled the Word of the Lord.

“I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit” (Mark 1:8).

Under pressure it is the Word of God you know that gives stability.